The course

WAIALAE COUNTRY CLUB

7,060 yards, Par 70

Established in the late 1920s, the Waialae Country Club sits between the Koolau mountain range on the north and the Pacific Ocean on the south and serves as a spectacular playing field for its members and for the world's best professional golfers once a year.

On land acquired from the Isenberg family, the Waialae Golf Course was designed by San Francisco architect Seth Raynor and opened for play in 1927. It was first groomed as an amenity for the guests of Waikiki's Royal Hawaiian Hotel.

The 40-year-old Isenberg home became the first clubhouse for the golf course. Competitive tournament play began immediately also when the first Hawaiian Open was held there in 1928.

Waialae has hosted major golfing events for over seven decades. Since 1965 it has been a prime venue for the annual official Hawaiian PGA Tour tournament.

The Waialae Golf Course, more than 7,000 yards long, displayed a new look in 1999 as PGA Tour-designated enhancements were put in place for the PGA Tour official event, the Sony Open in Hawaii.

Source: PGA.com

KEY HOLES

No. 1Mamao Distant Par 4, 488 yards
This hole was originally designed in 1927 by Seth Raynor with the famous Road hole of St. Andrews, Scotland, in mind. A new forward tee was built on the left so that this former par-5 hole will play as sort of a par-4 1/2. Depending on the wind the second shot to a very shallow green, which is guarded in front by a huge, deep bunker, can be played with anything from a 3-wood to a 9-iron.

No. 17'Alae, Mud Hen Par 3, 189 yards
The signature hole bears the name of the Sony Open fire-bird of Hawaiian lore. It is a very difficult par-3 requiring a long or middle iron, depending on the wind. The green was restored to the original Seth Raynor design, a classic Redan-style green with a large bunker on the left and a series of four deep, hidden bunkers guarding the right.

No. 6Lalau, Go Astray Par 4, 459 yards
A prevailing left-to-right wind blows straight toward the out-of-bounds fence on the right of the fairway. A well-placed drive between a new fairway bunker on the left and trees on the right will leave the golfer a short iron shot to a green protected on both sides by bunkers.

No. 18Kilou Loa, A Long Hook Par 5, 551 yards
The tournament can be won on this hole as Isao Aoki proved in 1983 when he holed his approach shot from 128 yards away for an eagle. A huge bunker is situated at the turn on this easily-reachable dog-leg left par-5 and makes the drive off the tee as important as any. Driving the ball into the rough or the bunker makes it a little more difficult to score an eagle, but a birdie is not out of the question.